It's not how you start ...

Sept. 20, 2013

Updated Sept. 18, 2013 2:55 p.m.

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Azusa Pacific women's volleyball player Alicia Utke played two seasons at Golden West College prior to transferring this summer. She was an All-Orange Empire Conference selection as a sophomore. COURTESY OF HOLLY MAGNUSON

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Former Los Alamitos High volleyball player Alicia Utke played two seasons on varsity. She would like to pursue a career in coaching when she graduates from Azusa Pacific. COURTESY OF HOLLY MAGNUSON

Azusa Pacific women's volleyball player Alicia Utke played two seasons at Golden West College prior to transferring this summer. She was an All-Orange Empire Conference selection as a sophomore. COURTESY OF HOLLY MAGNUSON

Alicia Utke is a fine college volleyball player who did not take the conventional route to Azusa Pacific University.

She was on Los Alamitos High’s freshman team as a freshman and its junior varsity team as a sophomore.

She did not captain its varsity team as an upperclassman, nor did she materialize into a prized recruit her senior year.

“Once I got to varsity, it was a higher level of play,” said Utke, a Cypress native. “I knew I was good enough, but there were girls that were a little better. That’s why I didn’t get much playing time.

“Everyone wants to start on varsity, but once I knew that wasn’t going to happen, I needed to be there for my team.”

Los Alamitos won 32 of 38 matches Utke’s senior year. She started at outside hitter that season, and she wound up drawing interest from a handful of minute East Coast universities.

Utke, now 20, hesitated to flee Southern California, however.

“I wasn’t really prepared for the university level at that point,” she admitted. “So I decided that the junior college route would be the best route for me to go.

“And it worked out in my favor. I’m super happy I went the JC route.”

Golden West College welcomed Utke to its volleyball program in 2011.

There, she was a two-time All-Orange Empire Conference recipient, nabbing first team honors as a sophomore last fall.

The Rustlers won 44 matches and consecutive OEC titles with Utke at the helm.

“I had a lot to prove coming out of high school,” she said. “Not starting sort of shut down my confidence. But once I started practicing at Golden West, I realized that I could be as good as everyone else.”

Utke transferred to Azusa Pacific this summer. The volleyball program was coming off its ninth-straight 20-win season.

And though she was one of five upperclassmen on the roster, Utke vacillated in assuming a leadership role before the Sept. 6 opener.

She has since started eight of nine matches. She leads the team in kills (95) and service aces (14).

“It’s harder (to be a team leader) being a new player on a team with mostly returners,” she said. “You don’t want to seem like that person who knows it all. But if there’s something that I notice, then I’ll definitely speak up about it.”

Azusa Pacific is off to a 7-2 start.

“This is what I’ve been waiting for,” Utke said. “This is the top level of competition that I’ve been at. It’s really exciting to play another level up, against girls that I’ve never been able to play against.

“It’s fun to have another challenge ahead of me.”

Utke will attempt to transition into coaching at the conclusion of her playing career.

It’s a hobby she picked up two years ago as a way to earn a little extra cash.

In a way, it has helped her reach the volleyball court on which she now plays.

“You really have to know your volleyball to teach a 12-year-old,” Utke said. “It really helped me break down the game myself. Explaining the sport to 10-, 11-year-olds made me think about things that I needed to improve myself.

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